Jamie Cullum's story with the Portuguese audience almost blends with the history of the Cooljazz festival (which has just incorporated sponsorship into its name, now being Ageas Cooljazz). After all, the Brit has made five appearances at the event, having debuted on that stage in 2005, during his first visit to Portugal.
As the festival - which is split between the Manuel Possolo Hippodrome and the Marechal Carmona Park in Cascais - began to prepare for its 20th edition, Cullum was immediately the first name to be announced. To close the commemorative edition, he will perform on the 31st of July, with the opening act by the Portuguese Inês Marques Lucas. Tickets are on sale ranging from €30 to €35.
An irresistible invitation
As he reveals in an interview with Time Out Cascais, Jamie Cullum didn't even aspire to give concerts this summer. In recent years, the musician has dedicated more time to his family, going on fewer tours. His last album, The Pianoman on Christmas, is also four years old. But the invitation from Cooljazz was too good to turn down, and Cullum set up a few more dates for a mini-tour during the sunniest months of the year.
Jamie also spoke about his relationship with the Portuguese audience, told us how important the stage experience is to him, slightly lifted the veil on the new songs he is preparing, and explained how the particular nature of his family has increasingly influenced his themes.
This will be your return to Cascais, a town where you've been many times, at a festival that has also become home. What do you like about Cascais when you come here?
The audience. Obviously, it's a beautiful part of the world and, as you know, Brits love going to Portugal... But, when I think about this festival, I always remember coming from a festival in the UK where I had a great time, with a great crowd. I love my fans in the UK, but when I arrived at my first Cooljazz, everything was amped up by 50 percent. People were louder, clapped more, sang louder, the sense of joy was heightened... As an artist, that's what I love the most. And I've been chasing that feeling every time I return.
With success?
Definitely. You can tell by the number of times I've played in Portugal over the years. It's one of the countries where I've played the most. Because we always know we have an incredible audience, and it's a lot of fun for us... We haven't made a trip there that hasn't been wonderful.
Obviously, over the years you've played in small clubs, big festivals, indoor venues... Cooljazz isn't just outdoors, it's in a very green environment. Does it feel better to play there?
Absolutely, it's a very beautiful place. We get the opportunity to go to many incredible places, places we wouldn't go to if it weren't for this way – and this is one of those places we always want to return to. Because it's beautiful, very green, lush. We always eat very well. The last time I was in Cascais I ate one of the most delicious fishes of my entire life, it was at an incredible restaurant by the sea, not far from the festival. Unfortunately, I can't remember the name. Anyway, I have great memories, we are always very well received.
And what can the audience expect from this year's concert? As the years go by, you've accumulated more and more songs... Does it become more difficult to choose the setlist?
Whenever you're on tour, at least for me in the last 15 or 20 years, it's because of a new album. So, you always have to present what you're currently working on and only revisit the things people want to hear from previous albums. This is the first time I'm on tour but not presenting any specific album. It's been 20 years since I released my first major album, Twentysomething, it seems like a great opportunity to revisit the last 20 years and dive deeper into the older records.
Is there more freedom on a tour like this?
Yes, it's a treasure to be able to do so. Because it means you've reached a point in your career where people want to see you regardless of what you're doing right now. I have new music to record, which I'll be recording very soon, but it won't be ready for release before I go on tour. There's no other reason: Cooljazz called and asked me, "do you want to do Cooljazz?" I was called for about three festivals this summer, one of which was Cooljazz, and I wasn't planning to do any concerts. But I thought, "well, I'd really like to do Cooljazz." So, basically, we based the other concerts on this one, and we managed to book more. Cascais will be the last one we do this summer.
And this is also a special edition of Cooljazz, marking its 20th year.
Yes! We're both turning 20, Cooljazz and my album Twentysomething, which was my first truly successful record.
Your story in Portugal obviously merges with that of the festival. Is it important to you to build these relationships?
Absolutely, it has been what has sustained my career. It means you're not just clinging to whatever is happening on Spotify, TikTok, or whatever. It means you're building real-life fans, and if those fans also organise festivals and would like to have you there, we're working together to create a perfect musical situation for everyone. And you get there and give it your all.
Your concerts are known for having that energy. Is it on stage where you feel best as a musician?
It's particularly special when a concert is going well and you're riding the wave and not thinking about whether you sang or played this or that note perfectly. And the audience is with you. It's a very special feeling, incomparable to anything else. But I also love being at home rehearsing, composing, and recording – it's something I relish a lot. But yes, it's hard to beat the feeling you get when you're on stage.
Is it addictive?
Not so much anymore... When I was younger, I felt like I couldn't not tour. But now that I'm older and have a family, I've been married for a long time, I like being as busy as I want to be. I don't always succeed at that, I love performing, but I wouldn't say it's addictive anymore.
And did you discover early on that you wouldn't be a traditional jazz musician? That you would have a more pop approach within the genre?
Well, I never even knew I would be a musician. Even though I was teaching myself to become one. But I never thought I would be somebody... Jazz then was a mystery to me, I had no teachers, there was no Internet, I just had the records. There was nobody I knew who really knew anything about it. So it was a mystery: why do I like this thing that I don't understand that well? I started having a musical life very early on, I was in rock and pop bands, bands that played at weddings, and when I started doing things more connected to jazz, it seemed natural to mix it with the other things I was doing in other bands. Nobody told me not to [laughs]. And I didn't grow up in a big city, it was a rural area, so I wasn't a very urban and cosmopolitan person. I wonder if, had I been exposed to a lot of live jazz in a big city, I might have had other ideas about mixing all this.
You mentioned earlier that you have new music to record. Are you going in a specific direction for a next album?
I'm really excited about the new songs I've been composing, but I haven't yet figured out exactly what direction they're taking. I think I'm still in that phase where I'm accumulating material. Then, the narrative of what this will be will gradually reveal itself somewhere during the process. But it sounds like familiar territory, a mix between compositions I hope will be good with a jazz and pop influence. I think it's going to sound like an album I would make. Apart from that, I'm still in the dark, still in the workshop playing around, which is a super fun part of the process.
And, with the years and experience, do you feel the need to address other kinds of subjects?
I find myself writing a lot about my family history in these latest songs. It's a subject of great interest to me because my mother was born in Burma, of an Indian father and a Burmese mother; my father was born in Jerusalem, and his mother escaped the Nazis. They didn't talk much about it as I was growing up, because I think they were forced to be as British as possible at the time they were in the UK and wanted us, their children, to be considered British, as much as we weren't at all. Then, when you have your own children, you become much more interested in it, think more about it. And this has been reflected in the lyrics of these songs, even if it wasn't intentional.
And with a career that's almost 25 years long, you've obviously achieved a lot, played in many places, and collaborated with many artists. What's left to do?
I feel like I should have a sexy answer, an album of duets with Beyoncé or something... But it's really the little things that have to do with the way I play, my ability to play chords and solos, and the way I compose melodies and chord progressions... They're small things that are very important to me. They're things I think about but know that no one else would be interested in [laughs]. But those are my ambitions, whether I'm applying them on stage or in the hallway of my house.
Is it important to stay grounded?
I think, naturally – at almost 45, with a teenage son and an 11-year-old daughter, being married... – if that doesn't keep you grounded, nothing will. But I don't think I have a tendency to walk in the opposite direction. I feel like, organically, I've always operated from a place of gratitude. Long before it was such a buzzword [laughs]! But I've always felt very grateful to be able to do what I do, to live in a relatively peaceful country, and to satisfy my curiosity. It's a very fortunate place to be.
Ageas Cooljazz, Hipódromo Manuel Possolo, Cascais. Qua, 31 de Julho. 30€-35€
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